Taunton River group has 'serious concerns' on rail project

Friday

Jul 27, 2007 at 12:01 AMJul 27, 2007 at 12:47 AM

Grant Welker

The Taunton River Watershed Campaign said Thursday it “generally supports” commuter rail projects as alternatives to expanding highways but has identified a series of “serious environmental concerns” with the proposed line to Fall River and New Bedford.

The group said it is concerned about the proposed rail's impact on wetlands, rare species and air quality, and management of growth and transportation planning.

“These issues must be reconciled in full before the project is permitted and constructed,” the statement said.

The proposed $1.4 billion rail project would extend to Fall River and New Bedford on separate lines after splitting in east Berkley. The state Executive Office of Transportation has not yet decided whether it will extend the commuter rail from the Attleboro, Middleboro or Stoughton lines.

If the Stoughton line is chosen, the campaign said, three major wetland systems in the Taunton River watershed will be impacted: the Hockomock, Pine and Assonet Cedar swamps.

The Hockomock Swamp features rare species like the water-willow steam borer, the Long's bulrush plant and the butterfly Hessel's hairsteak, the group claims. Some of these wetlands, it adds, are not replaceable.

Other habitants have not been documented, and railway embankments can affect an entire wetland by dividing habitats, the statement said.

The commuter line, if extended from Attleboro, would also impact wetlands, said Priscilla Chapman of the Taunton Watershed Advocate, one of 10 organizations under the Taunton River Watershed Campaign. She wasn't as familiar with the Middleboro route.

The Executive Office of Transportation had originally chosen Stoughton as the preferred route but has since decided to take another look at the other two options. The Attleboro and Middleboro lines wouldn't pass through the Hockomock, the largest Atlantic White Cedar swamp in the state, or Pine Swamp.

“At this point, we are very glad they are going back to look at the other options,” Chapman said. “Even if a portion of habitat is changed, it may affect the viability of the whole population.”

Kristina Egan, the transportation office's South Coast Rail manager, said the concerns of the watershed campaign and other organizations are “taken quite seriously.” Egan has begun a public comment period earlier than scheduled to allow environmental groups to voice their concerns and ask questions. Egan was taken on a tour recently of the Hockomock Swamp by the watershed campaign.

The crossing through the Hockomock Swamp would be about 3 miles long, Chapman said. Rights of way for the rail are already established, so re-routing the line would be far from easy. Even in a large swamp, Chapman said, a rail line could have a significant impact because it will create “edges,” similar to roads, that many species stay away from.

“It seriously changes the balance of the habitat,” she said.

There are a few ways that the rail could be constructed to mitigate the impact on wetlands, such as using a trestle bridge, building a culvert or creating wetlands replication, Egan said.

The project's high cost could play a role in how the environment is protected, Chapman said. If any funding were to be cut, “first on the chopping block are usually environmental measures,” she said. “With the impact on swamps, you can't really talk about mitigation. When species are globally rare, if you destroy or degrade the habitat, you can't get it back.”

The watershed campaign statement also outlined the necessity for placing rail stations near existing infrastructure or town centers, and said state financial and technical assistance “must be provided to help understaffed municipalities undertake planning, zoning and project review.”

The Executive Office of Transportation should consider using alternative energy measures, the statement urged, such as electric locomotives.

The office will begin a three-year study process this fall of the feasibility of each of the three rail path options and an in-depth environmental review.

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